Life in tight circumstances
by Ice-Cold-Diamonds
Summary: This is my sequel to Stephanie Meyer's book 'The Host'. Wanderer's life takes a series of turns, some good and some bad. Follow her journey and many others from Stephanie's first book as they fix what has been broken in the world they love. Please forgive my summary, I know it's terrible! Please read and review. Rated T just in case. O'Wanda and Jelanie romance :) xx
1. Chapter 1

The host fan fiction.

Chapter 1:

I begin to open my eyes and as soon as I do I see Ian's face hovering over my own. I slowly sit up, with the help of Ian, and look around the room. Jared has fallen asleep on Melanie's shoulder and Jamie is asleep on her lap. Mel looks up at me and smiles.

"How you doin' Wanda?" She asks.

"A little confused." I let out a small gasp. My voice is slightly different to Melanie's. It's higher and a lot more, girly. "Who am I?"

"You're you." Ian says before Mel can. "You are the same beautiful Wanderer you have always been."

I smile shyly and feel my cheeks begin to redden. Ian leans down and kisses my forehead. "You hungry?"

"I guess so. Not as much as I am tired though." I reply.

"Why don't you and Ian head back to your room and I'll bring Jamie and Jared around in the morning?" Mel offers.

"Is that okay with you doc?" Ian doesn't sound eager to be alone with me.

"It's fine."

"Okay then. Wanda, you ready?"

"Yes." I'm still not completely used to my new host's voice but I want to talk to Ian about everything so I'll have to forget about my uneasiness and push on.

Ian and I walk out of Docs hospital hand and hand. My new body is exactly the same height as Melanie and I'm glad I'm familiar with that aspect of things. We walk in silence almost the whole way to our bedroom before Ian breaks it. "Wanda, are you okay?" He asks, concerned.

"Yes, I'm fine, just tired." I answer quickly.

Ian turns me to face him and takes both my hands in his. "Wanderer, my love, you always have been a terrible liar. What's wrong?"

"I just, I hate the fact that I took someone's life. This girl had a family; she had friends and a life that didn't deserve to be taken from her. No one deserves to have their lives destroyed because of my species. I hate everything about what we souls are doing. I hate the fact that because of me a life has been demolished." Ian lets go of one of my hands and wipes away a single tear that has started to roll down my cheek.

"You didn't take away a life Wanda. You saved this girl. We have been taking souls out of humans for weeks now, but when Doc did the procedure on this girl, she never woke up. The only way to save her was to put you inside. You gave her life, even if she doesn't know it." Ian smiles and begins to walk again. We reach our tiny room and when my head hits the pillow I'm out.

I wake the next morning to find I'm alone in our bed. I get up and see a piece of paper folded up on a desk chair in the corner. The note reads, "Dear Wanda, You were sleeping so peacefully, I didn't want to wake you up. I'm in the fields. See you there, Ian."

I pull on a thin sweater and shorts. I get a quick glance in the mirror and smile. I have chocolate brown eyes and my hair matches them perfectly, except there aren't any silver highlights in my hair. I realize that my body is beautiful. I pull myself away from the mirror and step out into the cave tunnels.

On my way to the fields I catch people staring at me or muttering things but I ignore it and keep walking. I understand their confusion or misunderstanding. They had only just gotten used to me being in Melanie's body and now Mel is back and so am I but in a different form. I walk through the arched doorway and into the opening of the fields. I spot Ian way over on the other side and decide I'll just say hi later. He is always so focussed when it comes to work and me being there will only distract him. I'll be quiet and discreet and he won't even know I'm here.

"Wanda!" Jamie screams and wraps his arms around me. Well, so much for being quiet. I smile to myself. Jamie clings to me and when he finally lets go we set to work in the eastern side of the field. Maggie comes around with bottles of water and gives everyone one except me. I'm used to it. She will never truly accept me. Jamie is sweet and hands me his. I take a few short sips and then start cutting grain again.

A familiar voice from behind me says, "Woh, easy there Wanda. Don't stress yourself out too much." It's Jared. I turn around and he pulls me into a hug. I smile and I'm glad Mel doesn't look annoyed. After about a minute she taps Jared on the shoulder and explains she wants to speak to me.

"What's up Mel?" I ask her.

"Oh it's nothing bad I just wanted to know if you and Ian did anything last night." I raise an eyebrow in response. "You know, did you get down to it?" Still confusion on my side of the conversation. "Did you and your partner engage in sexual intercourse?" She asks in her best 'Soul' voice.

"Mel!" I thump her on the arm playfully.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"You should take that as a no."

"You didn't do anything?" She stares at me in shock. "I thought Ian would be all over you now that you're in a body of your own."

"Well, I was so tires last night that as soon as I got into bed I fell asleep."

It looks like Melanie's about to say something but Jeb interrupts. "Come on ladies. This grain isn't going to harvest itself!"

We both sigh and promise to talk later. When it's time to break for lunch I decide to keep going. I'm not hungry or tired so I thought I would put some of that energy to use. When everyone files back in after lunch Jeb pats me on the back and says quietly, "I'm impressed." I smile to myself and get back to work. Ian came to me about ten minutes later.

"Wanda, aren't you tired? You've been working all day."

"So have you."

"Yes I have but Wanda, I'm much stronger than you and you probably haven't adjusted to your new body yet." My 'new body', just another reminder that I'm not human.

"I'm fine Ian. Trust me. Only two more hours until the next break." I say perkily.

"Promise me you'll take a break when it's time. You didn't come out for lunch so you're probably tired and hungry."

I give him a quick kiss on the cheek and say, "I promise."

Two hours went by quickly. Ian saunters over to me to make sure I'm actually going to keep my promise. I smile at him and put my cutter down. We walk into the dining hall and sit at our usual table which now has an extra body. Mine. I sit in between Mel and Jamie and Ian sits next to Jared on the opposite side.

"Wanda you were working like crazy out there!" Mel says.

"I tried to keep up but it was so hard." Jamie seems impressed.

"I never thought I would ever have some competition, apart from Ian or Kyle, but you're dedicated and determined." Jared states.

"Just don't hurt yourself." That's my Ian. Praise, praise, praise, concern.

"Thank you guys." I take Ian's hands from across the table and say, "I won't" He looks down at the table and I let go of his hands.

Breaks over and Jamie and I race back to the fields. Only three more hours until knock off and only five more hours until dinner. The thought of food actually makes me a little queasy.

"Hello! Earth to Wanda!" Jamie waves his hands in front of my face and I turn to look at him.

"Sorry, deep in thought." I smile and tap my temple.

"Save that for when the days done." Back to work. By the time 'the days done' I am actually exhausted. It's not until I stand up straight that I realize this though. I collapse straight to the ground but Jamie picks me right up again and tells me I should go lay down.

"Don't tell Ian Jamie. Please. He'll only put me on laundry duty! I hate laundry duty." I plead.

"Fine. I won't say anything but tone it down a notch and stay with me in the fields so if anything like this happens again you'll be with someone."

"Thanks Jamie."

"Hey, what are brothers for." He says it in the cutest way and I give him the biggest hug I think I've ever given.

He whispers, "I love you Wanderer." And I whisper back, "I love you to Jamie." We both smile and walk back to my room.

"Wow, this is really small for the two of you both to be living in."

"Yeah, well, we don't exactly get much of a choice do we?" I tell Jamie and laydown on the bed.

Jamie sits in the desk chair. "I guess not."

I must have fallen asleep because I'm woken up by Ian.

"Hey beautiful." I frown. "Oh come one. You know I don't mean it like that. Your body is very attractive but YOU make the body. I fell in love with you for your heart, mind and soul not your hair, mouth and eyes. I love YOU Wanderer." Before I can even say thank you his lips crash down on mine. They feel warm and familiar and my heart jumps with joy. When we break away for air he grins and I kiss his smiling lips once more. "I love you Wanderer." He says simply.

"I love you too Ian." He kisses my forehead and we walk casually to the dining hall. Dinner is just being served when we get there so Ian and I grab a bowl each and prepare for the worst. Cold chicken soup.

"We need to go on another raid soon." Jared says when we are all sitting down.

Kyle joins us, 'I think we should get a few couches for the game room. Just so we have something other than rock and wood to sit on."

"Can I come this time?!" Jamie's so desperate to join us.

"No." Mel and I both say together. Jared and Ian chuckle to themselves and Jamie's face sinks.

"Jamie it's too dangerous."

"But Mel! I'm not a kid anymore!" Jamie's sadness turns to anger and he storms off to his room.

"I better go talk to him. I'll meet you guys here at breakfast and we can make a list of everything we need. Jared can you talk to Jeb?"

"Yeah sure." He kisses her quickly on the lips and goes over to where Jeb is sitting.

"And then there were three." I mumble.

Kyle pats me on the shoulder and I flinch. "More like, and then there were two." Kyle smiles sadly and leaves.

"I feel terrible. I don't mean to do that."

"It's not your fault. I mean he did try to kill you. You have every right to be a bit jumpy." Ian places his hand on the back of my neck and softly pulls me into a hug. I place my head on his shoulder and we fit together like a puzzle piece. "Come on. I really want to go to bed and if we have to go on a raid tomorrow we'll both need our sleep."

I nod.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

Today Ian shakes me awake and by the darkness in our room I'd say it's early morning.

"Good morning. I take it it's time to get up?" I ask sleepily.

"Yep." Ian groans.

I get dressed in my soul gear and Ian does the same. We walk down the halls to the dining room and meet with Jared, Mel and Kyle. "We should take the van so we can fit everything in."

"Good idea Jared." Mel sounds just as tired as I feel.

"Alright we should probably set off then. I'll drive first. Ian, you'll ride shotgun with me and Jared, Wanda and Mel can sleep in the back." We all nod, walk to the garage and quickly get in. Jared is instantly asleep on Mel's shoulder and I stare out the window vacantly.

It doesn't seem like very long before Kyle says, "Were here." I nod and get out of the truck. Ian has the shopping list so I open his door and take it from him.

"Be careful."

"I always am." I smile and give him a quick peck on the lips before entering the supermarket. I get double of everything we need and Cheetos for Mel. I grab a block of chocolate for us to share and leave the shop. Ian greets me with a hug and helps stack things in the back of the van. Jared is still asleep and I have a feeling Mel is to. When everything's packed I offer to drive and Kyle sits in the back.

Ian is starring into thin air so I take one hand off the steering wheel and place it on his cheek. "What you thinking about hun?"

"You." He answers simply and leans into my hand.

"What about me?" He mumbles something I can't understand. "Ian?"

"Just how lucky I am to have you in my life." He is truly amazing.

"Aw." I stop at a red light and kiss him on the cheek. "You're too sweet." He doesn't say anything.

I pull up in front of the furniture store and walk inside. I've been looking for about ten minutes and I see the perfect couch for the caves. It's black which means if it gets a little dirty you won't notice it. It's leather and seats four people but it also comes with two extra two seaters. I decide to by three beanbags instead of cushions and the store manager helps me load my purchases into the back of the van. I thank him and step into the driver's side door. Ian's asleep and so is Kyle but Jared and Mel are awake. Jared gets into the driver's side and Mel sits next to him. I climb into the back seat with Ian on one side and Kyle on the other.

By the time we get back to the caverns I have both of the O'Shea brothers asleep on my shoulders. "Hey Kyle, Ian, wake up you guys." I shake myself to get them to move.

"Mmm." They say in sync. It's crazy how alike they are. I mean they're brothers and they're close but they're almost like identical twins, even though Kyle's two years older than Ian.

"Come on, we're here." Kyle gets up but my O'Shea man doesn't. I kiss him on the lips and he smiles.

"What a great way to wake up." I giggle and we get out of the van. Ian, Kyle and Jared help with the big four seater and Mel and I take one of the two seaters. We place them in the game room and go back for the last things. Mel and I chuck the beanbags on top of the last two seater and Jared and Ian take it to the game room. Kyle helps Mel and I with the groceries and we stack then away in the kitchen storage room. When we get to the bottom of the last box Kyle says, "Oh what's this?"

I had completely forgotten about the chocolate and Cheetos. I grab a bowl and pour the Cheetos into it and grab the chocolate in the other hand. We all head off to the couches and sit down. I pass around the Cheetos, deliberately leaving them in Mel's lap. I break up the chocolate and chuck it to everyone then snuggle up with Ian.

We wake up to the sound of Jamie jumping up and down. We must have fallen asleep last night. Jamie looks so happy! He's jumping on the beanbags and eating left over chocolate. "Wanda? Did you do this?"

"Well, it was Kyle's idea but I picked out the couch."

"Thanks Kyle. Great choice Wanda."

"Thanks little bro." I scruffle his hair and he blushes.

"Right now. I think we could all use a bit of a break. Don't you?" Jeb asks as he walks into the game room. "I say we have some fun. How about a game of soccer? Ian, Jared, you'll be the captains."

"It's on O'Shea!" Jared says.

"Oh it is Howe!" Ian says. They laugh and stand either side of Jeb.

"Ian, you pick first." Jeb announces.

Ian picks Kyle.

Jared picks Aaron.

Wes.

Brandt.

Me.

Mel.

Lily.

Jamie.

Lacey.

Joseph.

"I'm going to ref." Jeb's too old to actually play against us 'young folk' as he would say.

We have the kick off and I step up to the centre line. I kick the soccer ball straight to Kyle and Ian sprints forward to back him up. Lacey runs towards the goal and Wes, Lily and I stay back for defence. Ian kicks a goal and I whisper to him, "Every goal you score you earn yourself a kiss. But you don't get them until the end of the game."

"Motivation." Ian laughs and steals the ball off Brandt, uses some fancy footwork and scores a goal. By the end of the game, Ian's scored four goals and comes over to collect his reward. He wraps his arms around my waist and I place my hands on his cheeks. I kiss him quickly.

"One." I kiss his lips. "Two." And again. "Three." A very quickly and Ian pulls me closer, "And four." He says his voice a low whisper. Ian pulls me closer and changes the quick peck to a slow burn kiss.

"I love you Ian."

"I love you more." These small words take my breath away. The way he says them make my knees weak and my brain fuzzy. I go to kiss him again but Jamie coughs. I'd completely forgot where we were. Standing in front of our family, them starring at us speechless.

"Sorry." I manage to get out. I can't be sure but I think I see Ian's cheeks redden and I giggle.

"Hey everyone. Lunchtime!" Jeb's good at breaking the ice. We all walk out and eat lunch.

"I'm going to wash up." I tell Ian, "I'll see you later okay?" I kiss him on the cheek and head off to our room to grab a towel and some shampoo. I fold up my clothes and place my things onto the ground. I place my things in the water and I instantly relax.

I start to shampoo my hair when I hear Kyle calling my name. I fill with fear, remembering back to the time he tried to kill me. I slip under the water and hold my breath. I hear Kyle's muffled voice, "Wanda, I know you're under there. I don't mean to scare you; I just want to ask you something." His voice is soft and sympathetic and I know he's not lying. I surface and he smiles.

"What's wrong?" I ask sadly.

"How'd you know something was wrong?"

I sigh, "You and Ian are so much alike. You sound the same. Look the same and have very similar personalities. I know my Ian and I guess I know you to." I smile and he nods. He chucks me my towel; I dry off and get changed. We walk to my room and Kyle sits on the bed. I sit on the ground, cross my legs and ask, "So, what's wrong? You never answered me."

"Nothing's wrong exactly. Girl troubles." I nod and he continues, "She's beautiful and funny and smart and kind and I think I like her but I'm not sure if she likes me." After a while he says, "She's a soul." That I was not expecting. When he looks up at me he seems sad so I go and sit on the edge of the bed next to him. His eyes start to water and I put my hand around his waist. "We captured her but when we took her out of her body, the host never woke up. She didn't want to leave so we put her back in. She was so sweet and promised never to tell anyone as long as she could stay here." He stops and turns so he's facing me. I do the same to him. "I never understood how my brother could love someone like you." I look down at my hands and he softly grabs my shoulder. "I don't mean it like that Wanda. You're a terrific girl but the fact that you weren't the same as us made me feel weird." He realizes he's just making me feel terrible so he tries to steer away from that subject, "But now I understand. Her names Sunny and I don't just like her, I love her." I smile and he pulls me in for a hug. He starts crying and I rub my hand up and down his back, trying to comfort him.

"It's okay Kyle." At that moment Ian walks in and Kyle slowly stops crying. I let him go when I'm positive he has completely finished. I go over to Ian, "Hey sweetie.' I whisper sadly and kiss him on the lips quickly. "You might want to talk to your brother. He's a bit distraught." Ian nods.

"Wanda, I still have a question to ask. Well, two really." I sit back down next to Kyle. Ian sits in the desk chair and Kyle continues. "I wanted to ask how to ask her out." I look to Ian, confused.

"He mean, hot to ask her to be his girlfriend. How to charm her."

"Okay, well that's easy, just be yourself, if you pretend to be someone you're not then you're basing your whole relationship on a lie. Distrust is an ugly thing. And the second question?"

He looks down to his lap at the same time Ian does and slowly speaks. "Why didn't you let me die? When I tried to kill you, you saved me and then told Jeb it was an accident." Ian looks up slightly, like he has been waiting to ask the same thing.

"I knew that there was good inside of you."

"I've never thanked you for what you did."

"I don't need to be thanked Kyle." With that he gets up and leaves.

"You okay?" I ask Ian at the same time he asks me. I laugh and walk over to him. He grabs hold of one of my hands and pulls me onto his lap. I rest my head on his chest and he kisses my hair.

"What should we do with the rest of the day off?" He asks.

"Chill in the game room?" Ian nods and he grabs a board game. Jamie sees us walking down with 'the game of life' and asks if he can play. We smile at him and he runs to get Jared and Mel. I chuckle to myself at how cute he is and Ian grabs my hand. We get to the game room and set up 'the game of life."

"Let's play some board games!" Jared yells and we settle in. By the end of the day we've played Monopoly, Sequence, Cluedo, Balderdash, many rounds of cards and of course the game of life. I'm tired and announce I'm going to bed. I get a few grunts for goodbye's and walk to my room. On the way I bump into a face I don't know. She's a soul like me and I instantly know who it is.

"You must be Sunny!" I smile and she shakes my hand.

"Yes I am but I don't know who you are? I'm sorry."

"I'm Wanda." I say with another smile.

"You're the other soul!" She says happily. I'd forgotten that with the darkness of the caves that you sometimes couldn't see the reflection of my eyes."

"That's me."

"You're Ian's girlfriend." I nod and blush. I love hearing the word girlfriend instead of partner.

"Have you met Ian?" I ask a little jealous. Kyle was right. She is very pretty.

"Yes but no more than a few times. Kyle talks about him more than he'd want everyone to know." She laughs and so do I.

"Ian and Kyle are very close." She nods in agreement and I ask her if I can go to my room to rest.

"Oh sure, silly me, I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay! I'll see you then."

Ian comes in at around eleven o'clock and gets under the covers. I pretend like I'm asleep. His arms wrap around my waist and he rests his head over mine and his chin on my shoulder. He kisses my shoulder and snuggles in closer, if that's even possible. I smile and we drift asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three:

It's been a month since the last raid and we've run out of all meats and most of our drinks. I get up and walk over to find Jeb and Ian talking. I slip my hand around his waist and say, "What's all the hush hush over here about?" He laughs and kisses my temple.

"What'd you want Wanda?" Jeb asks.

"Um just wanted to say that I think it's time to go on another raid." Ian's arm tenses around my shoulder and I squeeze his waist. "It's okay sweetie."

"I know. The storage room is low and Jared wants something that he has to pick out himself but I think he should tell you about that." I nod. "Tonight you can take Jared, stay at a hotel somewhere and come home tomorrow." I nod again.

Can I go as well Jeb? I think Jared will need a man's opinion." I have no idea what he's talking about but Jeb agrees and Ian and I walk to Jared and Mel's room.

"Hey Mel, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah sure Ian." They walk out the door and I don't waste any time.

"Jared, Ian and I are going on a raids and Jeb said you needed something that requires you to come."

"Sounds great!"

"I'm a little curious though, what is it you have to pick out?"

"It's an, um, engagement ring."

"Oh!" I can't believe I never thought of that.

"What? Do you think it's a bad idea?"

"No I just never thought that was the surprise."

"Well, I already have it planned, how I'm going to ask her I mean."

"Do tell!" I say excitedly.

"I'm going to get you, Ian Jamie and Mel to play the game of life with me. Mel always starts first and always goes straight to the family section. I'm going to ask Brandt if he can rig the electronic game pod so it rolls on ten and she'll land on 'get married' and I'll get down on one knee and say, 'So Mel, What do you think?'."

"Oh Jared! That's wonderful! She'll never suspect a thing!" Jared laughs and I give him a quick hug. "Congratulations."

"I haven't even asked her yet Wanda." He laughs again and we leave the room, a smile on both of our faces. I hear Mel and Ian whispering loudly and I pull Jared back around the corner. Eavesdropping is rude but they're acting to strange for me to not. I place a finger to my lips and Jared nods.

"I know she loves me but I can't help but feel like she loves Jared more. It was certainly that way when she was in your body. Why should that change now?"

"Because my body and I love Jared. When she shared my body she felt what I felt, wanted what I wanted, and what my body yearned for was Jared so naturally she yearned for Jared as well. But that's not the case anymore, she's in a body of her own and she only loves you. Sure she feels deeply about Jared but it's more of a brother sister relationship. They both love each other but it's not the same."

I hear Ian sigh and with that I walk around the corner, I decide to act like I haven't heard their conversation because I want to talk to Ian about it alone. "Hey, I hope we didn't keep you guy's too long." I kiss Ian on the cheek and he looks away. I frown and turn to Mel. "Do you know we're going on a raid?"

She nods, "Yes and it sucks I can't go but Jeb said he needed me for something so I guess I have no choice. "

I pat her on the shoulder. "We'll only be gone a night or two." She nods again but doesn't say anything she merely kisses Jared on the forehead and mutters goodbye. We head out to the garage and I deliberately walk with Ian not Jared. "Ian, sweetheart, are you okay?" Of course I already know the answer he grabs my hand but says nothing. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to but I'm always here. You know that right?" I ask sympathetically. He nods.

Jared says he'll drive until we get to phoenix and to the supermarket and I'll drive from there to the hotel. We all agree and Ian and I climb into the back seat. I curl up to Ian and place a hand on his chest, I use my other hand to take hold of his chin and I force him to look at me. "Please don't shut me out. Please talk to me. Please." He rests his head against mine and I feel his slowly fall asleep. I remember him tossing and turning last night, no wonder he's tired. I rest his head on my lap and lift his feet up so he's spread across the back seat. My fingers run through his hair and I whisper sweet nothings into the air.

"Wanda, Is Ian okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine, just tired." Jared nods and starts the engine.

"It'll only be an hour or so before we're at the super market."

"Sounds good to me." He smiles and I stare out into the desert. About forty minutes goes by and we stop to get petrol. Jared and I switch and I climb out of the driver's side door. I smile at the soul behind the desk and grab a few bars of chocolate. I open the door and tell Jared I'll just drive the rest of the way. I chuck him a chocolate bar and un-wrap mine. It takes about half an hour before I reach the outskirts of Pheonix. I get out of my seat and open the door to the back seat. I quickly go shopping and drive to the hotel. "Ian, wake up. We're at a hotel and I'm about to check into a room." He slowly lifts his head up and down and I walk into the lobby. Hello, my name is rising sun. What is yours?" She is polite and I reply, "Ice over the water. I would like a room with two double beds please." She nods happily and gives me the keys. "If you need anything there is a phone in your room."

"Thank you." I head back out to the car and Jared grabs our bags.

"He's asleep again." I give him the keys and say, "We'll be there in a minute."

"Okay." He walks in, nods to rising sun and gets in the elevator. I shake Ian and he opens his eyes, his beautiful blue eyes.

"Morning, How long was I asleep?"

"About an hour and it's actually night." He looks around sheepishly and I giggle. Ian slides his shades on and we walk into the elevator, smiling to the soul as we pass her. Jared's already ordered pizza and he says it'll be her in about ten minutes.

"Ian, you okay?" I hadn't noticed that he was out on the balcony starring into the night sky. Jared gets up but I shake my head.

"I'll talk to him."

"Hey." His voice is flat and I can't tell whether he's angry or just tired.

"Honey, I heard you and Melanie talking before we left." He flinches and I continue quickly. "I don't love Jared. In a friendship and family way I do but not like I love you." I take his hands in mine and turn him to face me. He doesn't meet my gaze. "It's you I want a life with. You I want to kiss and hug and hold. I want to spend forever with you, not Jared. Don't you understand? Please understand. I hate seeing you like this. I hate it. I want you to be happy. Please be happy."

He looks straight into my eyes then and says, "I'm sorry. I've been selfish and inconsiderate. I love you Wanderer. I really, truly, do and I understand if you're angry."

"I'm not angry Ian. I love you, I will always love you but I was starting to think you didn't love me. It was only for an hour or two but it felt like eternity. I felt horrible."

"I didn't mean to make you feel that way Wanda. I love you."

"I'm so happy to hear you say that sweetie." He kisses me full on the mouth. We stay like that kissing, hugging and smiling until finally the doorbell rings.

"Pizza!" Jared yells. I grab Ian by the hand and we run inside.

"I've got dibs on the end piece of garlic bread." Ian says and I kiss him on the cheek. I'm glad he's talking again. The boys sit in the lounge room and I grab the pizzas. I sit in an armchair and we watch a documentary and by the time it's over its ten o'clock and Ian drags me to bed. I have no trouble falling asleep and I don't think Ian does either.

When we finally wake up its eleven thirty and we're very chirpy. Ian says he'll drive and I said I'll ride shotgun. I still don't know what the background of that saying is but it's interesting and I have a feeling I'll be using it on a lot of raids.

"Ian?"

"Yeah Jared?"

"Did you want directions?"

"That might be handy but I think I've seen it before. What's the name?"

"The Jewellery Shop."

"Oh yeah, I know the one."

Jared shows me the ring he wants. It's beautiful, excellent taste. It has a gold band and a medium sized diamond in the middle with smaller diamonds all around the band. Melanie will love it. When I come back into the car with the ring I hand it to Jared. He has a quick look and then shows Ian. "It looks so beautiful in its box." Ian is in total awe and I have to admit that I feel a little jealous of Mel and Jared. I can't help but wonder if Ian will ask me some day.

**A/N: Please, please, please review! I really want to know If you guys enjoy it :D Chapter 4 will be up soon! xo**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

It's been seven days exactly since we went on that special raid. Jared still hasn't found the time to ask Mel yet. They've both been too busy. So I came up with a plan that will set Jared's in motion. "Jeb, Jared really wants to ask Mel but he hasn't had time to organise everything. Could you announce that the rest of the day will be a chill out day because that would give him a chance to ask her tonight?"

"Great thinking Wanda. I was wondering why Melanie wasn't running around showing everyone the rock on her finger." I imagine her tonight and tomorrow doing just that and laugh. Jeb makes his announcement and I tell Jared it's time to start getting organised. Jared's plan is set in action. I get Jamie and Ian to grab the board game and nibble while I tell Mel to meet us in the game room.

"Okay. Who else is playing with us?"

"The usual minus Kyle."

"So just you me, Jared, Ian and Jamie?"

"Yep." I say cheerfully.

"Let's go then!" We link arms and skip off to meet the boys. They've already set it up and as soon as we walk in Mel yells, "Dibs going first!" We all sit down and Mel rolls. She lands on the 'Get married' space and everyone goes quiet. Jared moves loudly to get Mel's attention and then slowly moves so he's on one knee.

"So Mel, how 'bout it?"

"Are you proposing?!" Mel shrieks.

"Yes. Melanie Stryder, will you marry me? "

"Of course I will!" The kiss and hug for a long time and we sit there awkwardly, not wanting to ruin this moment for them. Jamie coughs and Ian says,

"Get used to it kid." We all laugh and continue our game, soaking in the love and happiness around us.

**I know this is such a short chapter. Sorry, sorry, sorry. I'm writing Chapter five write now and it should be uploaded either tonight, tomorrow or Wednesday. Please keep reading and reviewing! xx**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five:

Melanie's complaining about doing laundry duty but she's glad to have the opportunity to show Lily and Lacey her engagement ring. I had a massive chat about it with her after we'd finished playing last night so I've heard everything before. I'm scrubbing away with terrible homemade soap when Jamie walks past and says, "Hey Wanda." I smile up at him and he looks down at my red hands. "You need to get some actual soap on the next raid; this cactus soap is really rough. Well, I better go, I'm already late." He hugs me goodbye and walks off to the fields.

We all stop washing clothes and sit down at a table for lunch. The girls chat about dresses they use to wear, shops they used to visit and parties they used to go to. I fell so bad that we took that away but I also feel a little left out, that is until Sunny comes and sits next to me. "Hey Wanda. Oh my god! What happened to your hands?"

"Cactus soap." I shrug.

'I'm lucky. I haven't done laundry duty yet. I'm always in the kitchen. I laugh and say,

"You're lucky alright!" She laughs then and we chat about life in the caves until lunch is over.

"Good luck with that soap Wanda!" Sunny yells when I'm walking out of the dining hall. I wave backwards at her and leave with Lily. Hours later and its knock off time. We finish a little before the people in the fields so I decide to have a bath before Dinner.

Jamie sits next to me at our table and I notice the cut on his hand. My expression was probably shock because Jamie quickly said, "Don't worry Wanda, I cut myself when I was working in the field."

"Make sure you visit doc to get some no-pain. Did you see Ian there?"

"Not in the morning, he was talking to Jeb about going on a raid but he's in the fields now." I race off without saying goodbye to Jamie. By the time I reach the west field I'm puffing and Ian smiles at me.

"Hey love, did you run all the way here to see me." We both chuckle and lean against the cave wall.

"I haven't seen you all day. I was thinking you might have gone on a raid without saying goodbye."

"I will always say goodbye." He says sweetly. I lean in, lift up his shirt and kiss his six pack, very close to becoming an eight pack. He shivers and pulls me in for a hug. I look into his eyes and see love and warmth but after a few seconds that love and warmth is replaced by fear and Ian collapses to the ground. I scream his name and catch his fall. I lay him down on the ground and yell for Jared over and over. I look down at Ian who's smiling weakly. Jared sprints to where we are laying and says, "Go get doc Wanda. I don't want to move him until I know what's happened." I nod and run all the way to the hospital.

"Doc." I puff, "Something's happened to Ian, he just collapsed on the ground. Jared's with him but wanted me to come and get you. He's in the fields. Please Doc, we have to hurry!" I get it all out in one breath. He picks up his bag and we run back to where Ian is.

I grab hold of one of his hands and brush his hair away from his face. "Ian, what happened?" Ian just shakes his head in response so Doc tries again. "Is there any pain in your back?" Another shake. "Okay, very slowly try to stand up. Jared, support him." Doc instructs but I'm already beside Ian, lifting his arm around my shoulders. I can tell he's taking as much weight off me as he can.

"I can handle it." But he shakes his head once more and tries to walk. That's when he puts his whole weight on me. I try to stay strong but Ian is rather heavy.

"Wanda, maybe doc and I should take him." Jared suggests.

"No. Doc, you go and get a bed ready for Ian, Jared and I will bring him down." Doc doesn't fight me. He walks off to his infirmary and Jared stands on the other side of Ian.

"You ready for this mate?" Ian nods and slowly we make our way to Doc's place. Ian's cot is ready and there's another one right next to it. Doc probably figured I'd be spending the night here. We sit Ian down and Jared gives him some water. I pull a chair over and sit next to Ian's cot, taking both his hands in mine.

"I look at Doc, "What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing to serious Wanda. I'd say he just over did it today. It's hard to say straight away. I'd like to keep him in here for a couple of days though. I don't want him stressing his body too much."

"Okay." When I look back to Ian I notice he's fallen asleep so I stay in the chair and quickly fall asleep to.

Ian's still asleep when I wake up. He's so tired and sick. He's pale, his eyes are drooping and he looks weak. I haven't seen him awake yet but I have a feeling he'll look worse. Just then Ian shoots up and I jump. The bags under his eyes are worse and when he looks at me the beautiful sapphires are replaced by dull grey rocks. I kiss his forehead and realize he has a fever.

"Wanderer?"

"I'm just grabbing some water, I'm not even leaving the room okay?" He nods, gives a small sigh of relief and lies back down.

"I'm going to take your temperature Ian." Doc walks over to him and sticks the thermometer in his mouth. After about ten seconds he yells, "Jesus Ian! 43 degrees."

"Doc use the 'cool'." I say calmly. Mel walks in and goes straight to IAN. He grabs one of her hands and she gives his a squeeze.

"How you doin'? Jared told me what happened." She looks at me to see if I'm okay and I nod.

"I'm fine Mel." I gasp. His voice is hoarse and lower than usual.

"Wanda?"

"Yeah sweetie."

"Come here." I walk to him, forgetting about the water, and fill his arms. I can feel him smiling as he buries his face in my hair. A few tears roll down my cheeks and whisper, "I was so scared Ian. I thought you were dying. I thought I was going to lose you."

He wipes away the tears and kisses me. 'I won't let that happen baby." I sit in the chair next to the cot and hold one of his hands, Melanie still holding the other. I look at the way he looks at Mel, the way a brother looks at his sister and smile. "I love you both. More than you'll ever know." Ian turns to face me and looks like he's about to say something but words don't come out, vomit does. By the time Ian's finished I am covered in Ian's sick.

"Wanda I am so sorry."

"Ian, don't apologise, you're sick, it happens. But if you don't mind I would like to go wash up." I hate leaving Ian but I hate staying and having them smell this all day. "Mel, you'll stay won't you?"

"Of course sis. Go get cleaned up." I run to our bedroom, grab a few things and run to the river room. I wash my hair and clean off the horrid smell. I slip on a lose singlet and a pair of jeans I bought on a raid. I stop by the kitchen and get food for all of us. I walk in and Jared's there too. Mel, Ian, Jared and I sit around his bed. I place my arm around his shoulders and rub my hand up and down.

"You feeling better?"

"Much better, now that you're here." He kisses me so gently on the cheek and reaches out to get some food. Melanie smiles at Jared and we deal the first of many rounds to follow. Jamie, Mel and Doc leave to get some lunch but Jared and I stay behind.

"I can work you know." Ian protests. I kiss him on the temple and shake my head.

"No you can't"

"Wanda's right Ian. You can't even walk without tiering yourself out. You need to rest until you're fully healed, otherwise you could have a small relapse and we'd be back to square one. "

I mouth the words 'thank you' to him and grab Ian a glass of water. "Only a few more days sweetheart."

"I know but I'd rather be out there," He points his head towards the door, "helping out and going on raids." "Mate, it's only two or three days. Bed rest will be over before you know it." When Jared leaves, some life in the room leaves with him. I've always admired the amount of energy he puts into a space.

"I need a bath." He sniffs when he says this and I laugh.

"Yes you do. Come on, I'll help you get to the bathing room. Tell me whenever you need to rest and we'll stop immediately okay?" Ian agrees and very, very slowly we make our way to the river. He sits on a ledge and I promise him to take ten seconds getting his new clothes. Jeb walks past and I ask him to keep an eye on Ian until I get back. They begin talking about scars and broken bones. I roll my eyes and walk to our room. I grab a tight fitting shirt for Ian, knowing it shows off his perfect muscles and some khaki pants. When I return, Ian's talking about breaking Kyle's nose with a baseball bat when he was nine. Jeb leaves and I help Ian get undressed. He insists he's okay but I'm not so sure.

"Wanda, why don't you have a bath too?" Ian asks, a cheeky smile forming on his face.

"Because," I answer, pretending not to catch on to his hint, "I had a bath earlier." He lets it go and slides into the water. I can tell the weight is off his shoulders as soon as his shoulders go under. He floats on his back and I hear him sighing peacefully.

For now, everything is good; Ian is on the mend, Mel and Jared are happy, no seekers have come looking for us and everyone in the caves are pleasant.

"I wonder how long it's going to last." Ian mumbles.

"Can you read minds?!"

Ian chuckles, "No. Why?"

"Because I was thinking the exact same thing."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six:

Melanie and I sit on her bed with notebooks and a laptop (one luxury they bought me on a raid) and look through dresses on a wedding shop website. We came up with the plan of doing as much online browsing as we can so Mel can have as much input in her wedding. She decides she wants me and Lily to be her bridesmaids, Sunny to be her flower girl and Jeb to walk her down the aisle. Doc will step in as the 'priest' and take care of the formal side of things. Although we can't do actual online shopping because they would need an address to deliver to. After many, many hours of looking Melanie finds the most beautiful dress and shoes that match it perfectly. Because we are almost exactly the same body wise I will try on Mel's dress and if it fits we can get it, if it's a little off Trudy can work some sowing magic.

"Wanda, would you be able to take care of the decorations and stuff, I'm terrible with organising."

"Sure. It would be an honour."

She hugs me and says she doesn't want to go with me on the raids. "I want it to be a surprise."

"Of course sis. But you could still come, you don't have to see what I get just keep me company."

"I don't know. What if I get to curious and take a peep. Maybe Sunny could go with you so you aren't shopping alone and you'd have another female opinion."

"Okay, you've convinced me but if you decide you won't to come I'd be more than thrilled."

"Alright." She says with a smile. "You better go ask Sunny if she's fine with going with you." We hug and I leave the room. I find Sunny in the kitchen, cleaning up after dinner.

"Hey Sunny."

She stops washing plates and looks up at me. "Hi Wanda. How are you on this fine day?"

"Very good. Yourself?"

"Very good." I laugh and we sit down at a table. "So what's up?"

"Well, I was talking to Melanie about ten minutes ago and she wants me to organise the decorating for her wedding and I was wondering if you would come shopping with me. You know, second opinion and a fresh perspective." I say optimistically.

"That sounds like so much fun! Are you sure it would be okay?"

"Of course Sunny! People trust you completely." Her face lights up at my answer and she give me a quick hug.

"When are we going?"

"I was thinking tomorrow morning. I know Jared and Mel are anxious to get married and I'm anxious to get organising. If we leave early, say eight o'clock, we would have almost a whole day tomorrow and we could stay overnight, do a few more things the next morning and come home then.

"Sounds like a plan."

"I'll tell Jeb in the morning before we set off."

"Okay. Wanderer I hate to cut the conversation short but if we're leaving tomorrow I will need rest and so will you. We can talk about everything in the car." I nod and we go our separate ways. I slip into bed next to Ian and his arm mechanically wraps around my waist. I can feel his heart thumping away slowly and mine falls in sync with his.

In the morning when I wake Ian is still sleeping soundly. I visit Jeb and explain that Sunny and I will be away for a few days. "That's fine Wanda. You two have fun okay!" We laugh and I walk with him until we reach Sunny and Kyle's room. The two of them moved in a few weeks ago and they've become such a close pair. "Goodbye and good luck." With that Jeb leaves and I knock on Sunny's door.

"Who is it?" Kyle moans.

"Just me. Can I come in?"

"Sure." I hear him stretch and I step in. Kyle's the only one in the room.

"Sunny's gone to wash up but she should be back soon."

"Okay. How is everything with you two?" I remember back to when he was crying in my arms. So much has changed since then. In the last few months they've become inseparable.

"I told her I loved her last night. She didn't say it back but she kissed me so I think that's a good thing."

"She's probably just a bit nervous."

"Yeah I know but I felt a bit rejected."

"Oh Kyle. She loves you." Sunny walks into the room dressed in a sophisticated dress like me. I love wearing soul gear, it's a nice change from dirty shorts and t-shirts. I stand up and say, "Hey Sunny. You look lovely."

She smiles shyly and says, "Not as lovely as you Wanda." I giggle and hug her.

"We'll be back soon Kyle." She kisses him on the cheek and we walk to the garage.

"Wanda, what do you actually have to get on this raid?"

"_WE _have to pre-order things like the flowers and cake. We can get things like balloons and material and of course Mel's dress and jewellery and shoes."

"What about suits and brides maid dresses?"

"Jared said the entire wedding should be focused on Melanie so he won't be wearing a tux and neither will his groomsmen. We won't be wearing dresses either."

"That's such a lovely idea." We drive the rest of the way I silence and when we get to the dress shop, Sunny waits in the car. I try on Melanie's dress and it fits perfectly. She's going to look amazing. I grab the shoes as well. I place everything neatly in the car and get back in the driver's seat. Sunny and I go into the Jeweller's and pick out the wedding rings. I choose a gorgeous necklace to go with the wedding dress and realize it's 2 o'clock. Sunny and I sit in a quaint café and talk about what a sweet couple Melanie and Jared are.

"Hey, why don't we get a spa treatment after we order the cake and flowers?"

"Sounds great. We should do all the shopping today, stay in a hotel tonight and get a massage tomorrow. We can go home relaxed." I suggest.

"I can see why Melanie asked you to do the planning. You're terrific at it."

I don't think I'm that great but I respond with a thank you. After we've finished eating we go to a party shop and by balloons. I grab some silver and white ones and some colourful ones for the wedding reception. Sunny grabs streamers, party poppers and table clothes. When we're satisfied with the party items we proceed to a small cake shop around the corner.

"Hello. My name is Roses Open to the Sun, would you like assistance?"

"No thank you. We are just looking for a wedding cake to surprise our friend."

The soul smiles, nods and looks back at her computer while saying, "I hope you find the right one. We have many to choose from. The photo albums are over there, take a look and if you find a cake you like I can have it ready for you whenever you like."

"Thank you." Sunny says and we scroll through photos. "Wanda, you're going for the whole silver and white theme aren't you?"

"Yep. Why?"

"Because I think I've found a cake to match it." She shows me a picture of a four tier cake but instead of the original round shapes it is a modern looking rectangular shaped cake. It has silver ribbons at the bottom of every layer and white floral designs in piped icing. "It's just right." Sunny says. I can't really say anything, it's all just so overwhelming but in a good way. I can't take it any longer, this is happening as soon as possible. I walk up to the soul, photo book in hand. "We'd like this to be ready in five days. Is that possible?"

"Very possible." She smiles when she says this and I ask, "Do you happen to know where we could go for flowers?"

"Yes. There is a florist two blocks away, 'Fiona's Flowers', I think it's called. Would you like directions?"

"No thank you. I'm sure we'll find it." Sunny says with a smile.

"I will see you in five days!" Roses says and we wave goodbye. Sunny and I walk around for about half an hour before we find the florist. We walk inside and instantly I see white roses in a bunch with a silver ribbon holding it together. I turn Sunny so she's facing them and she gasps.

"It's all falling together!"

"It is isn't it." I say with a small smile. We order the flowers so we can pick them up on the same day as the cake. That's the day we'll have the wedding. Sunny and I will have to decorate the day before and race in to pick up or orders. Hopefully everything goes as smoothly as it has today.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Sorry I haven't updated for a while. I have school, homework, training and family stuff that kept me away from the key board but I forced myself to get typing and add another chapter. Thanks so much to ****Xbree13197,****catnip851 and karlellewellyn for your reviews; at least I know three people are hooked on my story! ****I promise to update every weekend and maybe even during the week, depending on how busy I am. Also, I got asked a very good question a few chapters back and that was, "Are you going off the book or the movie?" I decided to go off the movie but with a few slight changes, like, you will notice that Brandt and Aaron are still alive. Anyway, you probably want to get reading so as always it would make me so happy if you could read and review! I love hearing your feedback xx**

Chapter seven:

It's only one more day until Mel and Jared's wedding. Sunny and I decorated the fields yesterday. We cut out an aisle in the grown wheat and draped white ribbon on each side. Jared built an arch with some wood we got a few raids back and Jamie helped keep Mel busy.

Ian and I have gone into the city to grab the cake and flowers. It's about ten thirty and Ian's driving at the moment. We sit in silence as the car rides smoothly across the bitumen.

Out of nowhere there's seeker cars. Four or five of them, surrounding our car. Before Ian and I can switch seats a male seeker is at the door. "Both of you, out of the car, now." He isn't rude but not polite either, just calm and firm. Ian and I stand on the side of the road. Ian's glasses are still on his head and I pray they remain there. "Bit bright out tonight?" The seekers question is rhetorical but I fear he is hinting for an answer. Ian slowly shakes his head and takes off his sunglasses, looking back at the soul as he does so. The seeker raises the torch to his eyes and says calmly, "You're human." The man nods and walks sideways to me. My eyes reflect and he nods again. "You are not human. What are you? His prisoner?"

"No." I lace my hand into Ian's and our fingers entwine. "I'm his friend."

"They're human." He says loudly. Others come out from the darkness and I'm amazed to find that they aren't souls. The looks on our faces obviously trigger something because a man laughs and says, "What? You didn't think you were the only ones left did you?"

"Well, yeah." Ian mumbles. I squeeze his hand and he puts his arm around my shoulder.

"Well, I thought I was the only one who changed sides."

"I guess you never know where you'll find your home." My voice is stable and proud. The soul smiles.

"My names Burns Living Flowers but just call me Burns. This is Nate, the leader and comedian." Ian shakes their hands and I do the same.

"My name's Ian and this is Wanda."

"Wanda? That doesn't sound very soul like." Nate says. We both giggle and I explain.

"When I first came to my new family my name was Wanderer but our leader Jeb thought it was to long so he shortened it."

After a few minutes of talking, Nate gives me a mobile phone and says that his number is already in there, "We should keep in contact with each other. Make sure the resistances are safe." Ian and I shake everyone's hands and we go our separate ways.

"I can drive. After that close call I don't think I'll be able to sleep." He kisses me on the check and goes to sleep. In about an hour we pull into the makeshift garage and Ian –after much prodding and poking from me- wakes up. I carefully grab the flowers, making sure that if we bump into Mel she won't see them and Ian grabs the cake. We walk into the kitchen storage room which has now become wedding H.Q. Jared walks in and asks if he can stay with Ian tonight. "Why? Has something happened? Did you two fight? What's going on?" The questions spill out of my mouth all at once and I feel embarrassed at my babbling.

"No Wanda, everything's fine. The bride and groom aren't allowed to see each other the night before the wedding."

"Oh."

"Mel was wondering if you'd stay with her. She doesn't like being alone and wants someone with her when she wakes up, what with the nerves and all."

"It would be me pleasure. Goodnight boys!" The wave and I head off to Mel's room.

"She greets me at the door. "Hey stranger. Are you okay?"

"Yeah why?"

"You have this flustered look, like you've seen something odd."

"Oh no I'm just really tired. This week has been so stressful." Oh god, that sounds so rude, I think about apologising but I'm so drained that I let it slip.

"Gosh. I have been so selfish haven't I? I've dumper all the work on you while I relax. I'm so sorry Wanda!"

"Mel it doesn't matter. You have every right to lounge around. You work so hard, you deserve a break. I'm just really tired. Maybe we should get some rest; you don't want bags under your eyes tomorrow." We slide into bed and fall asleep next to each other.

When I wake Melanie is still asleep and I crawl out of bed. I clear away Mel's desk and place a mirror on top. She groans so I can tell I've made a racket. "Sorry Mel." I whisper. I put some makeup Lily gave me on the table and grab hair brushes from my room. Trudy gave me some curlers so I grab them as well, plus the essentials like hair ties and bobby pins. When I get back to Melanie and Jared's bedroom Mel's up and chucking a loose top on.

"Morning." She says excitedly. I nod with a smile and place my things on the desk and give her a hug. "Today's the big day!" She sits in the chair and I start combing her hair.

"Knock knock!" Sunny yells from the other side of the door. "I just thought I'd bring Mel's things from the storeroom." She adds while walking through the doorway.

"Thanks Sunny." We say in sync.

"It's no problem at all ladies. Did you two need anything?"

"Breakfast would be great Sunny. Grab some for yourself and while I'm getting Melanie ready we can chat. Something VERY exciting happened last night." I say. She nods and leaves. Ian's probably already told Jared about Nate and his clan and I'll tell Sunny and Mel but we should probably wait until tomorrow, after the wedding, to tell everyone else.

"What is it?" Mel asks giddily.

"Wait until Sunny gets back okay?"

"Fine." She sighs and I go back to brushing her hair. By the time Sunny comes back all the rollers are in Mel's hair and we sit on her bed eating. "So?"

"Okay. Don't tell anyone until after the wedding." They both nod and I continue. "Ian and I met another resistance last night."

"Really?"

"Yes. Really. But they do have a soul, like us Sunny."

"So a soul that's switched sides?"

"Yes Mel."

"That's so exciting. It means we aren't just giving in." Melanie is so excited by the news.

"Melanie Stryder, calm down. We have three hours until the wedding and a lot needs to be done. Now that your hairs in rollers you can go and bath. Sunny and I will be waiting right here when you return." She runs quickly to the river room.

"I should probably get changed." Sunny says, pulling at her nightgown.

"Okay. I'll see you later Sunny." She smiles and then I'm alone. I brush my hair and chuck on a loose top and overalls. I sit on the bed and decide to have a quick nap while Mel's away. About fifteen minutes later and Mel is back.

"Hey sleepy head. Where's Sunny?"

"She said she had to get changed but that was a while ago."

"Maybe she's just relaxing."

"Alright well its 10:46 and I told everyone the wedding would be at 1:00 so we better get cracking." I have this vision of Mel walking down the cut out aisle in the fields, everyone smiling in her way as Jeb walks her to Jared. It's going to be perfect. "Oh bummer!" I yell. "I completely forgot!"

"What?"

"Nothing. Here's some silver nail polish. Paint your toes and finger nails. Two coats. I'll be back A.S.A.P." I run out of the room, straight to mine. Jared and Ian are awake and joking around. "Guys."

"Hey baby." Ian wraps an arm around my waist and squeezes lightly. "What's wrong?"

"You know how we cut an aisle for Mel out of the wheat?"

"Yeah."

"Well, we'll be up there with Doc and the others but what about everyone else. We have to cut out a few lanes for them as well."

"Don't stress Wanda. Kyle and I'll cut out the lanes while Jared has a wash. Honestly dude, all that stressing has made you sweat and all that sweat makes you stink." We all laugh and I kiss Ian.

"Thank god I have you."

"Come on, you better get back to Mel." I nod and Ian and I leave. He grabs my hand before I walk away. "Make sure you don't overdo yourself okay?" I kiss him on the cheek and he goes to find Kyle. Mel's still painting her toes when I get back.

"Everything sorted?"

"Yep." I answer cheerfully. "Have you done your fingernails yet?" She shakes her head as she finishes her pinkie toe and I grab her hand. I carefully paint her nails and when I look at the clock it reads 11:00. "Blow on those nails while I grab your dress." She begins to puff and I giggle. "Not that hard silly." She slows down a little and I continue to laugh. I take out her dress and show her. She squeals and pulls me into a hug.

"Wanda it's absolutely wonderful! I love it!" I can tell I'm blushing and we both sit on the bed admiring my choice. I deliberately chose a knee length dress so that the white chiffon fabric won't get dirty. It's strapless and has a silver beaded waist line. I grab out the shoes and show her. "They match perfectly."

"Maybe we should just relax for a while. It is only 11:11."

"Wanda, we still have to do my makeup, hair, get dressed and have lunch."

"Yes but getting dressed will take five minutes tops, makeup and hair will take half an hour and having lunch will take another half an hour. We have time to not stress."

"What happened to get you so calm? Thirty minutes ago you where the one running around like a headless chook."

"I got to see my man." She laughs.

"I can't wait until I see mine."

"Not long now sis."

"I'll go get lunch okay?"

"Alright." Jamie walks in as I walk out. I give him a quick hug and keep going. I catch a glimpse of the fields as I walk past ad see the boys hard at work. Kyle and Ian are cutting out lanes and Brandt and Aaron are putting up the arch Jared made. I see Jared eating, hug him from behind and sit down next to him.

"You okay? You look a little dazed."

"Yeah I just miss Mel."

"Jared, it hasn't even been a full day yet."

"Think about it though. What would you feel if this was you and Ian?"

"You have a point there."

"Thanks or doing this Wanda. For organising everything."

"It's okay. Melanie would do the exact same thing for me if I asked it of her." We hug again and I agree to tell her that Jared misses her. I collect two bowls of soup and walk back to Mel. Jamie's gone and I pass Melanie a bowl. "Jared says he misses you."

"He's such a big softie. He tries not to show it though." We sit in comfortable silence and eat our soup. When Mel finishes she goes to take out the rollers.

"No. No. No. Leave them in as long as possible."

"Fine Miss Bossy boots." I roll my eyes and place my bowl in hers. I look at the small clock on her desk; 11:45.

"Okay Mel, Let's get to it!"

**Sorry I stopped half way through; I'm trying to keep each chapter between one thousand and two thousand words, just so I'm consistent. Once again please review, every time someone comments on a chapter I can't help but smiling, you're all so sweet! Well my lovelies I might have another chapter up tomorrow :) xx**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter eight:

When I look at the clock I'm amazed that it's only 12:00, only fifteen minutes since I last checked. "Mel, I still haven't shown you the jewellery." I pick up the silver chained necklace with a single silver pearl hanging from it. The necklace and the earrings have the same type of pearl and they both match the beaded waistband on Mel's wedding dress.

"Wanda, how are you so good at everything?"

"Oh I'm not Mel! I'm terrible at a lot of things!"

"Whatever sis I'm putting on my dress and then you can do my hair. We only have an hour." Mel slips into her dress and looks into the mirror. She looks gorgeous and her hairs still in rollers and her makeups not done. She'll look a vision when I'm done with her.

"Come on Mel. Sit down and I'll do you make up." She jumps up and down and tries to sit still while she's in the desk chair. I put a towel over her shoulders and chest so no makeup gets on the white fabric. I decide to go for a natural look, no bright eye shadow or thick eye liner just earth tones. It's now 12:23. "Mel, you take out the rollers and I'll check on things outside of this bedroom." I laugh and she nods. "I'll be back in a jiffy." I hurry out the door and check on the fields. As I'm looking at the master piece they've created a strong pair of hands grabs my waist and a soft pair of lips kisses my neck.

"Hey love. Stressed yet?"

"Not in the slightest but if I don't keep going I will be."

"Surely you can spare a few seconds for a kiss. Hmm?" I chuckle and he spins me round. "You're so adorable." He kisses my nose, my cheeks and then my lips. I slip my hands around his neck and pull him closer.

"I really do have to go."

"Yeah yeah, I'll see you in half an hour."

"Half an hour?!"

"You stressed now?"

"Yes!" I yell as I run from the fields. I get to Mel at 12:32. Her hair is absolutely stunning and we decide to leave it out instead of pinning it up and when I've finished with the hair products Melanie looks in the mirror once more and puts on her shoes. She's almost ready. "One last thing. The veil." I take it out of the box and place it in her hair. It has the same beaded base as the waist band of her wedding dress.

"Thank you so much Wanderer!"

"Anytime Mel. Come on let's get you to your wedding." At that moment Jeb walks in.

"Oh Melanie. You look breath taking." Jeb says with the biggest smile I think I've ever seen on him. "Everyone's ready and waiting."

"Aren't we going to the game room?" Mel asks as we walk in the direction of the fields.

"Nope." We meet Kyle, Ian, Sunny and Jamie outside of the fields.

"Okay, Ian, Kyle and I will go in first and take our places, followed by Sunny and Jamie and then Jeb and Mel. Sound good?" They all nod and I smile. "Right, let's do this then." Kyle walks on the left of me and Ian on the right. We slowly walk down the aisle and we take our places under the arch. Sunny and Jamie walk down the aisle, their arms liked and smiles on both their faces. Then, after what feels like seven hours, it's Mel's turn. I see Ian nudge Jared out of the corner of my eye, alerting him to his gorgeous wife to be. She's positively glowing and Jared catches her eye. They exchange a look of love and happiness and I can't help but look away from Mel and at my Ian. He mouths the words 'I love you' and I can feel my cheeks redden. After all the formal things have been said and the vows have been shared it's time for the kiss. Jamie makes a sound of pure disgust as they lean in and Kyle ruffles his hair. They stay kissing for a few minutes while the fields fill with cheering and clapping.

It's now 8:30 –long after the wedding- and we're lounging around, enjoying the after party. Melanie and Jared stand on a table, ready to make their speech. Jeb yells for everyone to settle down and they start to say how wonderful today was. "I think we would both like to thank someone very close to our hearts, this someone has organised everything. From what my beautiful wife is wearing," Mel spins. "To this after party, she's done it all. Thank you so much for making this day the best it could possibly be. To Wanderer." Everyone repeats the last part, rising their plastic cups and nodding heads. After the speeches are finished Jared and Mel mingle between groups of people, laughing and chatting casually. They make each other so happy and they deserve the most amount of love the other can give. I hear a rumble and Ian seems to hear it to. I glance at Kyle and he looks at Ian, we all nod and quickly walk outside.

"Honey, take my jacket, its cold outside." He places it around my shoulder and grabs my hand. Kyle takes a photo with one of Jeb's old Polaroid cameras. He tucks it in his pocket without showing either of us and chuckle to himself.

"What's so funny?" I ask him.

"It's just how cute you two are." We climb behind a rock and Ian grabs the binoculars. He draws in a deep breath and I squeeze his hand.

"What is it?"

"Seekers."

"Nate and Burns?"

"No. This is a proper soul." I must be shaking because Kyle places an arm around my shoulder.

I lean into him and he whispers, "It's gonna' be okay Wanda. He's not going to find us." I move my head slowly up and down and Kyle loosens his grip. We slyly make our way back inside the caverns and alert Jeb of the situation. He tells everyone it's time for lights out and we clean up the kitchen quickly. I'm eager to get some rest, today has certainly been a long one.

"Wanderer?"

"Hmm?"

"Maybe it's time for us to go to bed." Ian asks whilst running his fingers through my hair.

"I think that's a good idea. I'm starting to drift off." He picks me up bridal style and carries me all the way to our room. "Ian! I can walk you know!" He only laughs and places me on our bed. Without even getting changed we get under the covers and fall asleep instantly, wrapped in each other's arms.

**A/N: So? What'd you think? I know this is only a shortish chapter but I wanted to finish off the wedding scenario. What do you think the deal was with that seeker? What caused him to take a look around the desert? Does he really leave? Is there more to him than they think or am I asking rhetorical questions for nothing? Ha ha. All will be revealed soon! Review and read and favourite and follow! It would mean the world to me :D **


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter nine:

It's been two days since Kyle, Ian and I saw the seeker. The only people we've told are Jeb, Jared, Mel, Sunny, Maggie, Aaron and Brandt although Ian and I did tell everyone about Nate's clan and everyone was pleased with _that _information. We, being Jeb and I, organised with Nate that he and Burns would come down and meet everyone. They're coming tomorrow and no one is more excited than Jamie. When we told him he went crazy with questions. How many days until we meet them? How long have they been hiding? How many of them are there? Where do they live? Things like that.

I sit at the table, peeling and cutting potatoes when Mel comes up looking rather sad. "Mel?"

She knows exactly what my tone means and responds. "I'm young Wanda; I didn't think I'd be getting married at my age."

"You are happy aren't you?"

"Of course I'm happy. Everything is absolutely perfect I'm just a little sad I'm not married under normal circumstances."

"You mean, the picket white fence, roses in the garden and kids?"

"Well, basically, yeah." She sighs and doesn't really hide her disappointment.

"Melanie Howe I am so very sorry you didn't get your dream wedding." She tries to interrupt but I keep going. "No, I am apologising, let me get this out. I'm sorry on behalf of my people; we took away your chance at a normal life."

"Wanderer, you don't understand, sure it wasn't the way I'd planned my life but if not for the invasion, I would have never met Mr Right. I'm just a bit down in the dumps today; pay no attention to me and my mood." I can tell she is still kind of upset but I let it past because I know if we have a friendly argument about this she'll win. We hug each other quickly and I get back to my potatoes. By the time I'm done my hands have little cuts all over them and Sunny tells me to go see Doc.

"But I haven't finished cooking dinner." I pout.

"Don't worry; I'll take care of dinner, go get your hands fixed."

"Thanks Sunny."

She waves her hand in my direction." Don't mention it." I stroll down to the hospital and grab some heal, not even noticing Jamie coming in behind me.

"Hey Wanda, what are you doing here?" I bring my hands up in the air in front of his face and he frowns. "Crap. How'd you manage that?"

"Potatoes." I shrug my shoulder and he laughs. "What are _you_ doing down here?" He has a cut on his arm and I heal it quickly. "How'd that happen Jamie?!"

"I've been in the fields."

"Jamie. How many times have you cut yourself? Huh? Please try to be more careful."

"Okay. Here pass me the heal and I'll fix up your hands." I smile at him whilst the magic spray does its thing and we walk to the river room before saying goodbye. I slide into the warm water and wash my hair. I dry off and get changed. My Ian is sitting at our usual table and I sit next to him. He puts his arm around my shoulder and I ask him about work.

"It was good but tiring. After the wedding we harvested the wheat and then today we had to plant the seeds for it to grow again."

"Don't work too hard." He kisses my temple and squeezes my shoulder.

"I won't babe." We talk for about an hour after dinner before turning in. Ian's asleep as soon as he sits on the bed and I smile at how tired he is, even though he'd never admit it. I look at my watch and it reads, 3:24. I think about getting up and running laps around the fields but I don't want to wake Ian up so I just lie in bed peacefully and slowly fall asleep thinking about the day ahead.

"Hun. They'll be here in ten minutes." I stretch my arms and get changed. We all wait at the garage, ready to greet the boys. Nate and Burns both pull Ian and I into a hug but they just shake everyone else's hands. Slowly Burns takes off his glasses and a gasp comes from everyone.

"Okay, don't freak out, Burns here is just like our Wanda. _Native_." Burns smiles at Jeb and goes through his and Nate's story. By the end of it everyone accepts him much quicker than they had with me. _Much_ quicker. We head to the dining hall and Burns talks about the planets he's been to and then finally, it's time for Jamie's questions.

"Where do you live?"

Nate answers these and gives Burns a break. "We live in some abandoned mountains about forty to fifty k's from here."

"How many of you are there?"

"Only eighteen but we do know that there are other groups. They weren't too happy about Burns and took off before we had the chance to explain anything."

"How long have you been hiding in the mountains?"

"Ever since the start of the invasion for me and Burns came about a year later."

"Cool." Jamie seems in awe of them both and Jared puts his arms around their shoulders.

"Looks like you guys have got an admirer."

"I'm just happy that there's a chance for us." Jamie says defensively.

"Jamie, there's always been a chance for us. As long as there is one of us left there will be a chance for us. We will never give up on fighting." Melanie kisses Jared on the cheek.

"I love you." Is what I think she mutters to him.

After a whole day of talking the boys drive home and everyone goes to bed. I'm shaken awake by Kyle. "Hey. That seekers back. I can't wake Ian up."

"Just leave him asleep. Let's go." We climb behind a large rock and Kyle gives me the binoculars. When the seeker turns around I begin to shake lightly, probably out of shock.

"Wanda?" Kyle places his hand on my shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"That's not a seeker. That's a healer. My healer."

"What? Why would_ your _healer be all the way out here in the desert?"

"It's pretty obvious isn't it? He's here for me."

**Dun Dun Dah! Sorry about the minor, minor cliff hanger but I wanted to get up what I'd written so far. Also I thought I'd let you know it's Sunday night here in Australia so you can keep track of when it's the weekend for me and you'll know when I'm updating. Please keep reading. I've had a few wonderful review but I wish I had some more (Hint Hint). As long as you keep reviewing I will keep writing :) xx**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Okay, I know, I know, I know! I deserve to be chased down the streets of my small country town with an angry mob behind me holding pitchforks and torches. I feel absolutely terrible for not updating but there were several obstacles in my way. 1. My laptop was getting fixed. 2. I caught glangela fever and was sick for about three weeks. 3. School has been totally hectic because I was away and had to catch up on assignments, homework, tests and also keep up with work already being given. I feel so totally horrible for making you guys wait so long and I know I don't deserve your loyalty but please keep reading and reviewing and being friendly and helpful and lovely! It means the WORLD to me that you all still read this even though it's really bad. So anyway, I've made you wait long enough. Here's chapter ten! **

Chapter 10:

"What do you mean, here for you?"

"He probably thinks that Melanie is still inside me and that I'm being held captive or something."

Kyle seems to understand and doesn't press that particular matter. "Do you think we should tell someone?"

"No," I begin to say, "We should wait until breakfast it's only about three and I don't think anyone is awake. Besides, it's better that we tell everyone at once." He nods his head in agreement and adds,

"I think we should tell Ian. Get another opinion on what to do about him." I'm confused by what he means when he says 'do with him' but I don't want to talk about it, not right now. I need to just be with Ian. I shiver and Kyle places an arm around me shoulders. "Wanda, I know I was cruel to you when you first came here and I am so sorry for that. Ian has never been happier and I think of you as my sister. I hope you know that.

I smile and give him a quick hug. "I think of you as my brother. I hope you know that." I say, mimicking his words. He squeezes my shoulder gently and assures me that everything will be fine. When we get back inside the caves Kyle's arm falls and he tells me to wait here. "I'll go get Ian." I nod, slide my back down the wall and place my face in my hands. Now that I'm alone I'm more focused on my thoughts. A million questions rattle inside my brain. How did he find us? Does he even know that we are here? What happens if he figures out where we live? What will everyone think? How will we deal with this?

"Wanderer?" Ian's soft voice breaks my train of thought. I lift my head and he squats in front of me. He looks me right in the eye and I nod, knowing exactly what he's about to say. He grabs my hands and pulls me to my feet. I rest my head on his chest and his arms pull my waist tighter in a comforting embrace. "Everything will be okay as long as we're together."

"What's going to happen to him? He was the only soul that I knew on a personal level that every really cared about MY well-being. Every other just cared about finding the resistance."

"Wanda, we can't know for certain what will happen," Kyle says in almost a whisper, "But we will try our hardest to avoid..."

"Death." I mumble. My comment basically stoped the conversation dead in its tracks and with that, we walk to our room and talk about what everyone might do when they hear about Fords.

"We need to be able to answer as many questions as possible."

"Ian, can we just think about this in the morning? Wanderer is clearly tired," Ian instantly looks at me when Kyle says this and I look up.

"I'm fine."

"Baby, that's what you say when you're not fine." I wonder when he figured that out. "We'll get some sleep, check to see if he's still there and then tell everyone at breakfast." I nod and slip under the covers. Ian's gone a few minutes as he walks Kyle to his room and when he comes back he seems a lot more tired. As he hops into bed his arm drapes over my side and we fit together like a puzzle.

-x-

"We have to kill him!"

"Calm down Magnolia, It isn't necessary to kill if we don't need to." Jeb tries to reason with her but instead it seems to fire her up more.

"Don't need to kill him? We have to! If we don't he'll find out about us, tell the seekers, they'll come here and kill us! If we don't do something now it will be too late." Everyone is quiet and then she mutters, "This is all _its_ fault." And an ice cold glare is thrown my way. That's when I run. I run to the one place I feel I belong. My cell. I settle in the corner, my knees to my chest, and cry. Even from where I'm sitting I can hear Jared yelling. I cover my ears and rock myself back and forth. Mel comes in a few minutes later.

"Wanda, what are you doing back here?" She sits on the hard ground next to me and I lay my head on her shoulder.

"It's where I'm supposed to be."

"No it's not Wanda." Mel's voice is stern.

"She seems to think it is." I nod my head at the wall in the direction of the dining room. "She doesn't even think I should be in the caves. She probably doesn't even think I should be alive."

"That's just who Maggie is. Her ideas and opinions are all very straight forward and set. She isn't exactly the 'open minded' type." I laugh at this. We hug for a brief moment and Jamie comes in.

"Are you okay Wanda? Aunt Maggie was way out of line." I lift my head up and down slowly.

"I'm okay."

"No you're not. I'm not a kid anymore, before the invasion I was, but not anymore. It's changed us all and for me, it's made me more mature. Whatever you were going to talk about with Melanie, you can talk about with me." I smile sadly and continue.

"Okay Mr Grown-up. I can't help but think that everything Maggie said could be true. Healer Fords could tell the Seekers, causing them to come here and kill us all. I If I was the cause of that I'd feel absolutely horrible. I cannot be the reason you die."

"Is your Healer a good man?" Mel asks.

"I believe so but I never knew him that well."

"Do you think, if we spoke to him, convinced him to live with us, he would? He might be a good asset to have. He could get medical supplies without being looked at twice."

"That's a good point Mel. I'll go talk to Uncle Jeb."

"Okay Jamie just make sure you speak to him alone." As he walks through the doorway Mel yells, "Give Jared a kiss for me!" We both giggle a little at this and Jamie utters a few words of disgust.

-x-

Jared and Ian come into the 'cell' about a half an hour later.

"Sorry we couldn't come sooner, we were in a meeting with Jeb. You okay Wands?" I give Jared a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I'm okay, thanks Jare." Jared and I have become like best friends. Ever since Mel was given back her body he's become more and more excepting of me. I think it's because Melanie's love for me has rubbed off on him.

"I'm sorry you had to hear all that Hun."

"Ian, it's partly true."

"Don't you dare say that. This isn't your fault okay?" I give in because I really can't be bothered fighting. It's not even lunch time and I'm already tired.

"Maybe we should get to work huh?" Mel suggests.

"Jeb's given us a job to do."

"And what's that?" I ask.

"Guard/lookout duty. All we have to do is keep an eye on the wanna-be doctor and we'll be all good. Mel and Wanda, you two are together for lookout on the South of the caves and Jared and I are on the North."

"Sounds easy." Mel starts to walk off and Jared follows. Ian and I slowly walk behind the two, admiring what a lovely couple they make.

"I still can't believe they're married." I say as I watch Melanie burst in laughter.

"It's certainly something you don't see very often now."

"Hmm."

"Wanda? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, just daydreaming." I answer hazily.

He reaches for my hand and our fingers interlock. I squeeze lightly and we run straight past the two lovers in front and all the way to the garage. Ian chucks me a water bottle, backpack, binoculars and sunscreen.

"I don't want you getting sunburnt because then, whenever I want to hold you," He gets closer as he says this, "I want be able to." He says in a light whisper and kisses me. I pull away and kiss his nose.

"No pain in the world will stop me from being in your arms." He smiles at my words and I kiss him again. This time our lips lock in a fiery passion and I never want to stop. All too soon though, we are interrupted by Jared and Mel.

"This is why we need to separate you two!" Jared laughs.

"Oh, like you guys don't kiss each other every chance you get." Ian adds sarcastically.

Mel and I roll our eyes and start the trek to the South side. We laugh as we hear the boys mucking around and running off. Today is going to be a long and boring one but there's about a third down, two thirds to go.

**A/N: Okay, so there you go. Please, review, favourite and follow. If you guys do I'll be super happy and bake you a big batch of cookies! My love to you all! xxxx**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: A few of you did review so, as promised, here's a yummy batch of chocolate chip cookies and another chapter! xxx**

Chapter 11:

"We need to go out on a raid soon Jedidiah and if we don't decide what to do about that healer soon we'll run out of food."

"Maggie, I have already told you and everyone else that I'll speak to him."

"Then start talking." And with that, the meeting is over. Uncle Jeb leaves the caves to find and try to convince Healer Fords and Maggie goes in the opposite direction, which leaves Mel, Ian and I sitting in the dining hall.

"As soon as we get the okay from Jeb we need to go on a raid." Jared and Jamie walk in as Ian says this and Jamie feels it's time for him to beg.

"Raid? When? Can I come this time? I'm not a child anymore you two!" He pleads with both Mel and Jared and then turns to me. "Wanda, you know I can do this. You know I can stay safe."

"Jamie, it's not my decision." I look over at Mel. Jared whispers something in her ear and she looks down at her feet for a moment, she always does this when she thinks.

"Maybe it would be okay. But on no condition are you to leave the truck. You can only watch and take it in for your first raid. Those are my rules."

Jamie's eyes just about pop out of their sockets. "Oh thankyou Mel! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

-x-

"Jeb's talking to the seeker- healer now." Kyle explains to Mel and I. Jared and Ian are still watching from afar, the conversation going on between 'the leader and the outsider' as Mel puts it.

"Thanks Kyle." He nods and heads off to the fields.

"How do you think it's going Mel?"

"I really have no clue. You remember Healer Fords a little more than me."

"True. I really don't know what to expect. He was a reasonable man when we met him, I'd say he still is, but who knows how he's taking the news."

"Well enough to stick around and listen I guess." A moment of silence passes before she speaks again. "Do you think he'll stay?"

"Once again I really don't know. There's a part of me convinced that he will accept our offer and then leave with our secrets. He strikes me as an honourable and loyal man." A silence falls over us again as we wait. Minutes later Ian and Jared come back into the caves.

"He's not staying."

"What?!" Mel and I ask at the same time.

"He does want to get away from the Seekers, that's why he's out here in the first place, but he doesn't want to betray his people." I look down as Jared says this. "Hey I didn't mean it like that."

"Yeah, I know. Just keep going."

"As I said, he doesn't think he can _go native_ completely. He won't say anything to anyone about us."

"Do you really believe he'll stay quiet?" Mel asks.

"I'm not 100% convinced but he gave Jeb his word." We all nod. "There's something else to. We must pretend Jeb killed him. If people found out that he knows about us and was let go, we would have a full scale uprising on our hands."

Jared gathers everyone in the dining hall. Uncle Jeb has stayed outside for a little bit longer so it seems like he's burying Fords. "The soul is dead." Is all he says and that's all that is needed.

-x-

"Wanda, why aren't Mel and Ian coming with us?"

"Ian and Mel are two of our strongest people. We are a bit behind on harvesting the grain because of the whole situation with Healer Fords and the grain is almost dead. We need strong people to harvest quickly."

"Good point. At least I have you and Jared, not that I need someone with me." Jared gives him a stern look in the rear view mirror and he shuts up. A few hours later and we're in Phoenix. I finish with the food shopping and we find a hotel to stay in until dark.

"That's when the real raid begins Jamie."

"What do you mean?"

"We have to steal from the hospital. Medical supplies are essential." He understands and very quickly we are back in the truck.

The raid goes by with no trouble at all and we are on the road back home.

"Jared slow down. It's only a 60 zone."

"Wanda, I'm pretty sure it's 80."

"Jare, slow down anyway, it's not worth the risk of getting caught."

"I saw the sign Wanderer. It said 80." His pride has taken over him. Stupid man and now we're paying for it.

"Jared! Seekers! Slow down!"

"There's no way we'll out run them." He slams on the brakes and I under my seatbelt to switch with him but it's too late. He doesn't even have time to put on his glasses. The seeker comes up with a torch.

"Humans!" The seeker yells and two more come out of the car. Jared shoots the first and tries to fight of the second. The third soul does something terrible, something I never saw coming. He goes to the back seat.

"Jamie!" That's when I hear the gun shot. I race to Jared, collapsed on the ground as the two seekers run back to their car and speed off. I grab the small black object and fire at their tyres but in the dark, my aiming is terrible and I miss both times.

"Jare, stay with me."

"Wanda, you need to get Jamie. Go."

"No. Listen to me. I know where their taking him. We will get him back. We have to get you better first. Come on." I help him into the back seat to lie down. Because the bullet wound and probably bullet are in his abdomen I can't tie around anything to stop the bleeding. I drive fast, as fast as this truck can go. Within a quarter of an hour I'm back and it's 1:24 in the morning. I leave Jared there and race to get Kyle. He doesn't ask questions about Jamie because he knows, that right now I can't deal with it. I can't wake up Mel or Ian. Both will be distraught. Kyle carries Jared to the infirmary while I wake doc.

-x-

By the time the surgery id down and Jare has been cleaned there's blood everywhere. The wound has been sealed and Kyle went back to bed. Doc came to check if I was okay waiting in here by myself because he is tired and wants to go to bed.

"I'll be fine. Don't say anything until Mel and Ian know okay?"

"Sure."

After about two hours of grieving for both Jamie and Jared I stand up and go get Ian. Mel should have both Ian and I hear when she gets the news.

"Ian. Wake up."

"What's wrong?"

"Follow me." He reaches for my hand but I turn away and begin to walk.

"Why are we going to the infirmary?" He asks but I don't answer.

**A/N: I feel so horrible for doing this to you but in every other fan fic I have read, one of the big four is taken and I really wanted this to be unpredictable and emotional. Please don't hate me. Also please review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Oh my gosh you guys I am so sorry! About four days after I updated my mum sprung a surprise overseas trip on me. I had no time to tell anyone and it lasted for about a month. So here I am, feeling like the meanest person in the world but I'll update when I can. I have two other stories that I also have to update so I can't promise a regular time but I can promise that I'll try my hardest to please you guys! Plus, I'm trying some different POV's now. A lot of you have asked me if I could do it and I thought now would be the best time to start :) Just a heads up, there are a few little angry/argument/accusing scenes in this chapter.**

**I also forgot to do disclaimers. Oops! Disclaimer: I own nothing but my plot. Stephanie Meyer owns the backstory and the characters. **

Chapter 12:

Ian's POV

Something isn't right. I feel like I should ask Wanderer more questions than I have. Did they find another soul on the raid? Do we need a place to talk where no one will hear us? What's with all the secrecy? I don't ask these questions though. I walk hand in hand with Wanda, our feet making a soft beat upon the beaten earth floor.

When we get to the infirmary Wanda still hasn't said a word. It's then that I realise it has to be something bad. She opens the doors and the one thing I see, I didn't expect. I feel like screaming, crying and falling all at the same time but nothing happens. I stand there, staring at my best friend, a pool of blood around him. A small hand rubs my arm but I brush it off with anger and walk over to Jared. His breathing is coming out harsh and infrequent.

"Ian maybe-"

"How could you let this happen Wanderer?" I ask in a loud and fierce tone. She says nothing. Immediately I feel like apologizing, this isn't her fault. "Wanda I didn't-"

"No. You're right." And before I can argue she flees the room.

About ten minutes later I hear Mel scream and, to get her anger and sadness out, punch the nearest thing possible. Which happens to be Wanderer. Mel doesn't seem to take anything except Jared into account. She pushes me aside and grabs Jared's hand. I take it as my cue to help Wanda. "Melanie," Wanderer's voice comes in a soft whisper. "He's not dead." Her eyes finally leave Jared's and she shoots daggers at Wanda.

"And what about Jamie. He's probably going to be tortured and then killed." Jamie. I hadn't even thought to ask about Jamie.

"What happened to him?"

"Ian, sit down and I'll tell you both what happened."

-x-

After waiting for us to react to her story she speaks again. "I tried to save him, I really did. I felt terrible for leaving Jamie but I knew he wasn't harmed. Jared would have bled to death if I'd gone after the seekers. I couldn't let him die. I just couldn't. I know it's my fault and you should never forgive me but you need to know that he'll be fine. I can rescue Jamie. I'll make it up to everyone." By this point Mel and I are speechless and Wanda's crying.

"I'm sorry Wanderer. I didn't mean to hit you or to snap at you, I was just really emotional. Finding out your brother's missing and then seeing your husband drenched in blood in a hospital kind of does that to you. It also doesn't help when you're pregnant." Wait what? Did I hear that right? I must have because Wanda squeals.

"You're pregnant! Why didn't you say anything Mel?" The girls both laugh.

"I only found out a few days ago. Right before you went on the raid."

"So, that's why Jeb didn't let you go." I speak up.

"Yes Mr and Mrs Clueless. I can't believe you guys never worked that out." For a moment everything is back to normal. And then Melanie talks again. "Wanderer, you said you could rescue Jamie."

"Yeah. I know where they take all the prisoners. It's a massive hospital in New York."

"Babe are you sure, I mean, why would they take them to a hospital." I ask, a little quizzical.

"You guys, the cells are _underneath_ the hospital. As much as the seekers love to torture to get information, a lot of the wounded can't handle it and their bodies give in. The seekers make sure that when they're about to die, they heal them using medicine from the hospital above, and then continue to hurt them." I can see Melanie wince and I hold her free hand for comfort. She squeezes it lightly and turns her attention to Wanda.

"It's good that you know where they're holding him. I guess it's a start, but Wanda, you said _you_ could rescue him. As in, _you_ have a plain that involves _you_."

"Your right I do have a plan but I'm not sure how thrilled you'll be about it." She says this to me and I can tell from the look in her eye's it's dangerous.

"No."

"Ian, this is the only plan I can think of that might actually work. Besides, you don't even know what I'm going to say."

I sigh. "Fine." She kisses my cheek in a thank you and I blush. I'll never get over the feeling of her soft lips brushing against my warm skin.

"Ian?"

"Sorry, go."

"We go out and by the whitest clothes we can." I start to hear Mel laugh. "I dress up as a healer and when the Seekers ask for medicine I get some and take it down for them. I find where Jamie is and try to get him out. If I don't have enough time I'll come back the next time they ask for medicine and go straight to his sell. Also, Healers are in charge of giving the prisoners their food so I'll volunteer for that."

"Okay that is a pretty good plan. But how do you know all this and how are you going to get an I.D card?"

"Healer Fords."

"What do you mean?"

"I should be able to get him to pretend I'm an intern or something. Even they get I.D cards. And they're usually the ones who get stuck with the smaller jobs like retrieving medicine and giving people their food."

"So you better go talk to him Wands." Mel suggests. "Here's camping in a nearby cave. He hasn't really wanted to return to the city yet so he's just been staying there."

"Will you show me?" Wanda asks but Mel shakes her head.

"No. I can't leave Jared, but Ian can take you to him."

-x-

"This is it." I run my hand through the air, gesturing to the dark cave and small tent inside it.

"Very…Homey?"

We both laugh. "Hello? Who's there?" Fords steps out. "Wanderer?"

"Hi Healer Fords. How are you?"

"Well, I'm actually quite enjoying being away from the hustle and bustle of city life. How are you both?"

I answer for us. "We're good. We actually came to see if you could do us a favour."

He raises an eyebrow at Wanda. "What is this so called favour?"

"Jamie was taken by some Seekers. I need to pretend I'm an intern so I'll need an I.D card. Do you think you'll be able to play along?"

"Wanderer, what you're asking me is very serious. I'll have to lie to a lot of people. I'll have to _betray _a lot of people."

"But Jamie was doing nothing. The seekers took him for no reason other than him being human. He's just a kid Fords." I plead with him until he finally gives in.

"Alright. I guess we better go buy you some new clothes."


End file.
